Home Depot was sued in 2008 by two whistleblowers claiming that the company had violated the False Claims Act by selling products that did not comply with the Trade Agreements Act (“TAA”) to the U.S. government through its GSA Schedule contract. The United States has not intervened in the case. Home Depot recently moved for reconsideration of
April 2011
Man Faces 75 Years in Jail for Falsely Claiming to be a Service Disabled Veteran
There have already been a number of high profile small business enforcement actions this year, an enforcement trend we discussed in our April 7 webinar, and a conviction from a federal jury in New York is the latest sign that this trend is continuing.
Between June 2007 and June 2010, John Raymond Anthony White’s …
Proposed FAR Provision Governing Organizational Conflicts of Interest
On April 26, 2011, the government issued a proposed rule governing organizational conflicts of interest. This proposed rule diverges substantially from the current framework in FAR 9.5, from the DFARS rule proposed last year, and from certain aspects of decades of decisional law from GAO and the Court of Federal Claims. Please click here for…
Senate Committee Approves Bill Extending GAO’s Protest Jurisdiction Over Certain Civilian Agency Task and Delivery Orders
On April 13, 2011, the U.S. Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs approved S. 498, the Independent Task and Delivery Order Review Extension Act of 2011. This bill extends the Government Accountability Office’s (“GAO”) protest jurisdiction over task and delivery orders under civilian agency procurements in excess of $10 million through September 30,…
Tax Delinquents Could Soon Find Themselves Without Contracts
On Monday, millions of individuals and companies filed their 2010 tax returns. Some of these individuals and companies have fallen behind on their tax payments. The reasons for falling behind vary—some have simply fallen on hard times and cannot pay, while others thumb their noses at the tax laws in a bold game of “Catch…
FCA Seal Provisions Upheld by the Fourth Circuit
Public Access To FAPIIS
As we blogged previously, as of today – April 15, 2011 – the public has access to all information (excluding past performance reviews) in the Federal Awardee Performance and Integrity Information System (“FAPIIS”). FAPIIS was created in 2010 as a one-stop shop for contracting officers to review information about prospective contractors’ business ethics, integrity, …
The Verizon Settlement
Verizon Communications, Inc. recently paid the U.S. government $93.5 million to resolve False Claims Act allegations that it overcharged the government on voice and data telecommunications services contracts. In addition to the significance of the amount paid, the case is notable for both the government’s aggressive enforcement of FAR provisions and the fact the…
Offeror’s Expired Proposal Brought Back to Life
For one reason or another, the date on which an agency anticipates granting a contract award often comes and goes with no award decision being made. In these situations, contractors are often asked beforehand to extend the acceptance period of their proposals to accommodate the expected delay in award. But what happens when the contractor…
Impending Government Shutdown Won’t Shutter U.S. Courts, But Troubles Loom for Government Attorneys and Administrative Proceedings
Lost in the current political fight over the federal budget is the reality that a government shutdown may have consequences for civil litigation pending in the federal courts. If federal government attorneys are included in the approximately 800,000 staffers deemed non-essential, they will be banned from using email, accessing their Blackberrys, and doing any …